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Andrew Ronquillo - The Philippine Star
March 24, 2026 | 12:00am
Members of PISTON protest in Metro Manila during the transport strike on March 19, 2026.
PISTON via Facebook
MANILA, Philippines — A fresh wave of transport strikes is set for Thursday and Friday, organized by a coalition of transportation groups, commuters and workers demanding more concrete government action on surging fuel prices.
“This is a larger mobilization because we have utility vehicle (UV) express, bus, transport network vehicle service (TNVS) and motorcycle taxi drivers joining us,” PISTON president Mody Floranda said at a press conference yesterday.
PISTON is part of the No to Oil Price Hike Coalition along with Defend Jobs Philippines, Manibela and Laban TNVS.
The coalition is demanding the government remove fuel taxes, roll back oil prices to P55 per liter, repeal the oil deregulation law and implement fare hikes simultaneously with raising the minimum wage.
The Philippine National Police said it would deploy 50,000 personnel and roll out free rides nationwide to assist commuters and ensure public safety during the two-day strike.
Around 500,000 public utility vehicle drivers are expected to join the strike, according to Manibela chairman Mar Valbuena.
“We don’t want commuters to sacrifice or be inconvenienced. But you’re not listening to our grievances,” Valbuena said at a separate press conference, addressing the Marcos administration.
Sandy Hachaso of the Bus Employees Association of the Philippines clarified that the transport strike was not intended to coincide with the public’s anticipated Holy Week travels.
“We are all affected, even if it is not Holy Week,” Hachaso said. “This was driven by negligence of the government and US aggression. Crisis drove this circumstance to emerge.”
Around 5,000 TNVS units have also expressed their solidarity by turning off their applications and not accepting bookings during the strike. — Neil Jayson Servallos, Mark Ernest Villeza, Ramon Efren Lazaro, Gerry Lee Gorit
